Overview

Wind Power That Floats - Several companies are on their way to demonstrating off-shore, floating platform wind power systems by borrowing heavily from oil and gas offshore platform technology. (MIT Technology Review April 2, 2008)

Projects

Cape Wind

Wind, out of the Blue - If Fortune 500 companies like Norsk Hydro (now StatoilHydro) and Siemens haven't deployed a single floating prototype in six years and predict a 10-15 year wait for viability, it's quite a stretch to imagine that Blue H could install a 120-turbine, billion-dollar wind farm 45 miles off New Bedford now, qualifying it as an "alternative" to Cape Wind. (CapeCodToday April 4, 2008).

World's first floating wind farm to be built in North Sea - Siemens has teamed up with a Norwegian energy group, Norsk Hydro, to install a wind farm in the middle of the North Sea, beginning with one test unit in under two years, ending with 200 turbines by 2014. The turbines would access the strong off-shore winds, and would not be visible from land. (The Independent UK June 27, 2007)

Blue H

Offshore Wind at an Affordable Price - Blue H Submerged Deepwater Platform technology is adapted from floating platforms developed by the oil industry, to support a tower and a wind turbine. Their wind farms would be so far from shore as to be virtually invisible, where the winds are stronger and are more constant. (EcoGeek Dec. 6, 2007)

Proposal could calm storm over wind farm - In December, Blue H launched the world's first floating turbine, an 80-kilowatt demonstration project off the coast of southern Italy. Soon, the turbine will be moved about 10 miles offshore to water more than 350 feet deep. (Boston Globe March 15, 2008)

Statoil Hydro < Sway

Deep-Water Wind: Out of Sight - Sway is developing a deepwater system that will allow turbines to be situated farther out to sea where winds can be steadier and stronger, hidden from all save a few passing ships. It is based on a floating elongated pole extending far below the water surface with ballast at the bottom part. (EcoGeek Feb. 25, 2008)

Inflated/Floating

Magenn

HeliWind

Directory:HeliWind - The HeliWind design by the Hawaii Consulting Group replaces the blades and tower of a conventional wind turbine with a lighter-than-air helical balloon and lowers the generator to the ground. With generating costs expected at around $0.034/kW-hr, the design is expected to go into production in June 2011. (PESWiki July 6, 2008)